ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2022

The Nuclear Safety Authority presents its report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2022.

This report is required by Article L. 592-31 of the Environment Code.

It was submitted to the President of the Republic,  the Prime Minister and the Presidents of the Senate and the National Assembly and  transmitted to the Parliamentary Office for the  Evaluation of Scientific and Technological Choices, pursuant to the above-mentioned Article.
 

2022, An exceptional year and context

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In 2022, the level of safety in the nuclear installations remained at a satisfactory level, as did radiation protection in the industrial, medical and radioactive substances transport sectors. However, the year 2022 was marked by issues in the nuclear installations hitherto never encountered, as well as by a period of intense heatwave. These events once again highlighted the need to maintain safety margins and to anticipate the challenges ahead, including dealing with exceptional situations linked to climate change.

The year 2022 was also the year of debate on the French energy mix and the new prospects for nuclear energy, whether the continued operation of the existing installations or the construction of new ones.
These come against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine and international tensions, which accentuate the issues of energy sovereignty and re-industrialisation.

Given this context, the French Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN) considers that the discussions being held in preparation for the next Multi-year Energy Programme (MEP) should tackle the nuclear sector as a system (nuclear power generation, operation and future of the “fuel cycle”, management of the associated wastes). This nuclear system has to be taken in an holistic way, in order to be able to anticipate the safety, radiation protection and environmental protection issues as a whole, including those linked to climate change, with a medium and long term vision, thereby ensuring that these issues are at the heart of public decisions-making process.